#ah this actor doesn’t really match the character

[sing-me-under]

Every time I hear Jeremy Jordan voice act, all I can think is “that sounds like Jeremy Jordan”. Like, I can’t stop thinking he just sounds like himself. IMO, Varian is the most egregious example of this because I just think “this just sounds like Jeremy Jordan,” ESPECIALLY when he’s singing.

I don’t know. I can’t stop thinking about it. I think the only times I’ve heard Jeremy Jordan’s voice and thought “ah yes this sounds like the character” and not “this sounds like Jeremy Jordan” is when he was in Newsies and like some parts of Hazbin Hotel. In More Than Anything, he just sounds so much more like Jeremy Jordan than Lucifer. It’s this weird dissonance. Which is so strange because most of the rest of his lines outside of this one episode of heartfelt vulnerability sounds like Lucifer. His first lines were great! Take That Depression! And so are all of his interactions with Alastor. I know a lot of people’s favorite HH song is More Than Anything, but I just can’t get into it because all I hear is Jeremy Jordan.

[kstaki]

Ohsama Sentai King-Ohger vs. Donbrothers/Kyoryuger Early screening Stage Greeting First timing report

(I am just going to address them as their Character it would be a little confusing for some if I use their name)

There might be some spoiler from the movie?

First timing.

They were having issue with microphone while introducing themselves.

Everyone in audience were calling out to them. 🥹 even they call out the Director 🤣 (he did Donbrothers)

Rita at first like eh eh eh is it on? The rest help them out.

(Apparently trying to figure out it was on or not didn’t seem so obvious)

Then Saruhara was also but they also teasing him until he like leave me alone

Tsubasa apparently say he sort of still on a run, he came from Kyoto? Then he has a new hair duo he said Sononi did it for him.

Kijino was like EHHH YOURE CALLING ME ? (He did it also in the second time)

Then King Ohger were ask about their other role they played in alter world

Gira was like I become Uchu ah…he tried to do different facial expression to show the difference between both of Gira.

Yanma was mentioned about him and Shiokara. I think it was about usually Shiokara follow him then how in this opposite? Like he just follow whatever Shiokara said and just act it out? (plus considering Yanma doesn’t like to prepare too much for a scene)

Himeno mention apparently the director and rest were apologising to her because she had to eat the flower which wasn’t very nice and that she create it with the image of an unrequited Cinderella in mind. (Probably to both they felt so bad?)

(Jeramie mention like he cry watching?)

Rita didn’t expect to do again the dance and singing but it was different then what theh did in the Idol episode. They did mentions that even in main story this probably the most they have seen Rita’s smile the most?

(Yes they still sang and dance the Moffun song…DAMN IT TOEI I WANT A RITA CHARACTER SONG…I mean Moffun is ok but come on…sorry I am still forever salty)

Kaguragi got mention about sumo that he was ask to give a face he normally don’t show. So he gave a really pathetic looking face. The audience found it cute

Jeramie was too into ‘Come on’ (I think I remember he mention he came up with it) after having to finally got a chance to change out of his usual get up.

Rita mention that he had a lot of pose for it.

Then Jeramie was too into the Come on that he end up walking opposite direction to which he pointing. I think he try to save it by saying it the other side!

Tarou was worried since it been a year since they were together. End up everyone did alright.

Kijino mention how he was impressed they did Avataro change in one take

Tarou mention nothing had change just the two hairstyle (Haruka and Tsubasa)

I remember that Kaguragi was saying that Takano-san is huge fan so that why he able to do the script. Kaguragi got mention about the Sumo match the ‘Hao’ ‘Hao’ gesture to the person he fought with whose name was Jackie-Chan 😅

There was one point Tarou said Takano-San name wrongly the King-Ohger corrected him 😂😅

Apparently they were asking about Prince about his action scene how much he train (If I remember correctly)

He was super shy but serious although he was at G-Rosso before which the King-Ohger said to him.

Most of the King-Ohger seem like were teasing him.

Kingohger were saying they had work with their suit actors to do their own action scene.

Director mention he thought King-Ohger would be too overwhelm by Donbrothers but King-Ohger was amazing. He did mention some part in movie would be only be understood by people who watch the main story.

Also parts that was cut out of the movie from what director said would be added in blu-ray (IT A WIN a bit I hope it for both of them since Director was for Donbrothers)

Director mentions that Murasame actually appears in beginning. Asking if we notice it or not. (I mention in my previous spoiler where they are)

There was moment Kaguragi got mention about how the two blue know each other then they share about their story. Like they never thought they get work with each other in this situation. I think Yanma mention was at one point jealous Saruhara got it first?

Haruka was ask to do her killed moment again then Yanma also when he got electrocuted

Tarou say we got a bond Gira last min say his famous line Sekai O Shihai Suru! When they were leaving the stage.

[itskikanow]

In honor of the DLC coming out tomorrow I’ve replayed Error 143 to enjoy the adorable dork that is Micah Yujin. So let me gush about him will ya.

Micah Yujin is the main character and only love interest of the indie dating sim called Error 143 made by Jenny Vi Pham and her crew. The main premise is that you, the player, lost in a coding/hacking competition to your rival (Micah) and you as the sane level headed person as you are decided to troll him by hacking his computer and leaving a note “Ha, whose the better hacker now”. In response Micah hacks you back and puts you in his not discord server that he made and from then on comedy ensues.

The gameplay is pretty straightforward, it’s like every other dating sim. There’s the occasional hacking minigame that is just hangman which is neat, but the whole design of the whole game is so cool. I love pixel art and not discord looks fantastic with it. I also find it elegant that the parts without voice acting look like chat conversations, and the conversations with voice acting to be video calls is fucking great!

Also his voice actor goes hard!!! Corey Wilder is a talented va and I wish nothing but the best for them!^^

Micah himself is a funny playful cheeky guy with a shit eating grin on his face. His banter with the player is honestly hilarious and wholesome at times. He doesn’t hide the fact that he thinks you’re hot and he starts being flirty around day one or two. Him and the player have some good chemistry and they really match each other’s vibe. (Oh yeah forgot to mention but the player character actually have a personality in this game. They’re not a fully fleshed out character but it’s more than what the player character gets in these games. The only other time I can think something similar happened was in The Arcana [also a great dating sim I do recommend that])

The story spans out 5 days (well, 4 actually cuz day 4 is pretty short). In those 5 days the player and Micah get to know each other pretty quickly and it’s pretty obvious you both really like each other. And Micah puts his money where his mouth is because on day 5 he makes your dream first date come true. I find that so wholesome and sweet like on my first playthrough my first thought ‘I wanna hug him’ and ‘AAAAAAAAAA!!!!!’ (And that’s just one of the sweetest things he does in game, there’s like two other one which I both adore a ton.)

But I couldn’t because the game ended! 🥲🥲🥲🥲 (Thankfully the dlc is coming and will probably give me that option and I honestly cannot wait!^^) It is a short game but it’s definitely one of the best ones out there!

I also remember when this game first came out it got really popular in just a few short days. And I also cannot forget how in just one night a bunch of twitter ghouls jumped on the creator and accused her of fetishizing black men, hiring a va who voiced in a pe** game and how her writing is actually very racist because….. she shared some old concept ideas for Micah’s parents that are not even canon. Back then I was pretty scared about those accusations because I myself am not white and thought “oh fuck what if actual black people found something actually problematic that I’ve missed”. In reality what actually happened was a bunch of racists didn’t like that there was a dating sim out there with the main love interest being a half Korean half African American. And they hurled shit on both Jenny and Corey. I even saw people whom I used to follow take those accusations seriously and write it of as “ah even when we get a dating sim with a black love interest there’s always a catch”. (I was honestly baffled by them cuz, ‘wha- you can’t be serious! There’s gotta be something more to this’.) Thankfully Jenny managed to resolve that drama in the end by explaining everything in a tweet longer? (idk the exact name of it but you know what that is) and addressing every main accusation while also addressing how the harassment has affected her. I’m honestly proud how she managed to still write on Twitter where most would’ve gone silent to take a break from that bullshit. But she and Corey shouldn’t have been subjected to that kind of harassment in the first fucking place.

Still, I’m so happy that things are better now. I don’t have Twitter anymore (and I’ve been much happier since) so I don’t know if anything similar happened since then (hopefully not).

Amidst all that bullshit tho there were some people who gave genuine constructive criticism, one I can remember is about Micah’s inconsistent hair texture. Since there are a lot of artists in the team they all drew his hair a little differently every time. Jenny responded to that critique apologizing and doing some research before deciding what Micah’s hair type is gonna be. Ever since then his hair has been consistent in official arts. The assets in game hadn’t been switched out but by the sneak peeks she posted on Instagram, it looks like they’re gonna be finally.

(Ok I originally wanted to write down his hair type but I’m actually not sure what she said cuz I forgor but comparing his hair to pictures on google, seems to his hair is either 4B, 4C or a mix between those two. I’m sorry I don’t remember 🥲)

My apologies for the detour there. My final thoughts about the game though is that it’s amazing, fun and I adore Micah a lot! If you like dating sims, fun and wholesome cheesy romance then I can recommend it to you wholeheartedly!^^

[brunhielda]

Looking for some validation or explanation here from fellow theater peeps. 🎭

The Situation:

It is about 3 rehearsals from Dress.

I have been learning lines, blocking scenes, doing back ground research and in all the other little ways DEVELOPING a character for about 3 months.

The costume designer only really started doing anything last week. No one knows why but we are afraid to ask in case it just blows up in our face. We have been asking about her for at least 6 weeks now.

I know this woman. I sing in church choir with this woman. I will probably have to work with her on a show again. She is the mother of my best friend from HS and still occasionally sees me as a child. Ah the joys of small towns and thier community theater.

I have been in enough shows in this town to know the break down of late costuming. It goes “I have to find 15 1920esq dresses and matching household staff outfits and make five avitator outfits. You are the only modern character. You got pants from home that might work?”

I prepared. I knew who my character was and bought online options of things I didn’t have. I showed up to rehearsals with the pieces I had as they came in and talked to the director about what was coming. To her credit, she said “I think it’s good, but (Costumes) has final say, so talk to her.”

So I talk to (Costumes). I tell her what we have been thinking. She has noises about a skirt and a chain for my glasses, I express why a skirt doesn’t work practically. She says “Bring the stuff in as soon as it arrives so I can see it.” I do so. She doesn’t see it til a rehearsal later.

Again THREE DAYS BEFORE DRESS this woman has the gall to look at what I put together and say “This isn’t what I envisioned for the character at all. My vision for the character is ______” and proceeds to list an outfit I could pull from my wardrobe.

Like- she KNOWS me. She KNOWS what I wear. She has been in theater for YEARS. She should know if she puts me in MY clothing I will be “the character as me,” and both she and the director on separate occasions have mentioned that I shouldn’t play the character as me.

And it would be fine if she went “let’s bend this a little” and added a scarf or a top, but by the time we are to DRESS, she sends me a text to say she wants to scrap everything I am in and go with her “vision.”

So I have a minor panic attack over breakfast, and call the director and ask- “Do you like what I am doing on stage? Because if you put me in that costume I will end up going in an entirely different direction.”

My director, for her part, seemed to want to placate me and was like “No, if you’re uncomfortable in a skirt we’ll go with pants-“ and I try to say “It’s not about that, it’s about changing the whole look this late in the game-

Yeah… they basically decided they didn’t want me to have a melt down, and changed my top to be more colorful (I was going with an elegant black on black, which was labeled boring) while being happy I at least found palazzo pants to go with over the yoga pants from earlier.

(The sweater doesn’t go past your butt. And?!?!?)

There is still a general vibe that this actor (me) is just too stressed right now so we are going to humor her even though clearly our option was better, and why can’t she be more flexible?

I mean… am I crazy???? I created a whole character without any input and then was told she should look entirely different, but your acting is fine, as if costume has ZERO effect on character.

Like… I should be mad about that, right?

[lgcxhaeun]

audition dated: may 10th

haeun wasn’t ready for this audition. she doesn’t understand the reason why some of them (her) have to audition when they (her) clearly don’t match the profile of a musical actor (her). it seems like a waste of time. she knows she’s getting stuck with ensemble where she has to worry about blending her voice and not standing out.

she goes into the audition with a knot in her stomach and her nerves frayed. she doesn’t want to do this. it’s another one of those things of the training process that makes her incredibly uncomfortable. no one likes to try out for something they know they wouldn’t achieve. yet she still carries her feet to the audition room to show her what she had.

it was strange, really. despite being practically defeated going in, she still wants to try her best. even though she knows her best isn’t good enough, she was never one not to try. she’d talk down on herself the whole time but she’d at least do it. haeun was a fighter, if anything.

when she faces them to talk about her character, her mind goes blank. everything she’s prepared seems to fly out the window all at once. for a moment she hesitates, evident by her body language and stammering. after a moment of tense silence, haeun gathers her bearings. “i want my character to be like me: gentle. i think my character would be someone whose energy is calming and brings people at ease and their power reflects that: they’re able to make people agreeable and calm down.”

“i’m someone who leads with kindness because my mother always taught me that kindness heals. i want to be the healer of my group of friends. so i tend to shoulder their burdens with them. i want my character to reflect this characteristic because i think it’s noble.” ah, she forgot one more thing. how would the knight interact with the others? she thought about it for a moment before adding, “my knight would be the peacemaker of the other knights, the confidant. as someone both kind and incredibly reliable.”

haeun could only think that maybe, just maybe, they needed a sweet character to balance out the other stronger personalities. the sidekick that’s a sweetheart has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? but she doesn’t dare let herself hope. instead she bows, finalising her input on her knight. there was only waiting to see where she gets put, if at all, in the musical.

[sarah-dipitous]

Hellsite Nostalgia Tour 2023 Day 13

“Faith”

This’ll be interesting. Don’t think I’ve ever started this early in the day but I don’t wanna have to watch a lot that I need to pay attention to tonight sooooo. Watching supernatural on my lunch break (and maybe some when I go hide in the file room after)

Would I Survive the First Five Minutes??: oh god. We START with Sam and Dean?? Am I one of the kids in this scene? Because they do have a pretty good record so far of saving people…by hunting things. One might call it the family business. I’m gonna say yes 10/12

Dean grappling with mortality this early in the series fucking sucks. I need to stop getting attached to characters who are THAT prepared to die. But also the first time he almost dies is electrocution from a taser and the time he DIES DIES is a rusty nail??? Come on, writers room!

Poor Sam wanting to believe so badly in this faith healer, and matching it to how badly Dean doesn’t believe he deserves to be healed/saved/whatever. (But I also wonder how far in advance the writers knew they were going to put Castiel in the show. There have been a NUMBER of times when I’ve just been like “ah, yes. This was Cas’s work.”)

Not this mom taking her frustrations with the reverend out on Dean…Dean who doesn’t believe he deserves it at all

Oh and now the GUILT he feels over the reaper trading people’s lives and deaths. On one hand, it’s the only way he could possibly know this was going on, but on the other, he’s gonna carry this with him for a long time

Oh. This reverend is TERRIBLE terrible. A FRAUD fraud. And he’s CHOOSING the victims?? Nah. Sorry to Layla but this dude need to be taken out. (It’s like I KNEW this was going to be HER time to “be healed.” I can’t blame her for going up there, but damn)

Why do people in any kind of horror, even horror lite like this, ever stop running from the monster?

If the mom is controlling the reaper…omg. What a threat. So are they working together????? I don’t really get it.

Realizing now that Layla’s mom and the reverend’s wife are not actually the same person, and this episode makes a LOT more sense

She’s gonna send it after Dean, isn’t she? (Knew it. She IS gonna)

And I’m not saying she deserved it but I am saying that god’s timing is always riiiiiiiiiiight~

Poor Layla though…unless? Are…are they gonna?? No. There’s only a minute or so left…

“Been On My Mind…”: Dean had an *emotional* connection to Layla, but like, she patted his head and they both almost cried. I might be ace, but even I don’t think that counts as hooking up

“The Long Game”

I'm not gonna lie, guys...I'm really sleepy and I don't wanna be watching tv. I did a lot at work today (good things, important things, things that I mostly enjoy doing) and I did it all in new shoes, and then I came home with some Chipotle...all of this was a mistake if I wanted to watch Doctor Who. But the show must go on!!

Anyway, I remember something being off with the kid they brought along with them, but I can't remember what it is right now. Can't wait to figure out what it was.

I'm not saying humans are all bad, but why do we need to have a galactic empire? Why are we the center of it? Like..........we're not all bad but we definitely don't need to colonize the whole universe.

Did she just say The Face of Boe is pregnant? She did. Okay. Accepting that...a being who is literally just a face at this point can be pregnant.

Okay. This guy is from 2012. I suppose it's reasonable that he might remember the phone number to his parents' landline...

Alright, I bet Adam tries to sit in that chair to get all the info himself

YEAH. I knew he'd do some fuck shit. I shouldn't be more invested in this Adam plotline, but here I am.

There will probably be some good shit from whatever Rose and the Doctor are doing as well as whatever’s going on on floor 500, but it’s just not as interesting right now

Also, it feels silly to be like “I knew I recognized the actor playing The Editor” when it’s literally Simon Pegg but…he look so different from how I recognize him. It’s the bleached hair

There is some commentary to be made about Cathica being the one to (unbeknownst to The Editor) start doubting the system in place on Satellite Five while Adam runs toward it with open arms. And just like that, my interest in the plot lines has flipped

I do wish there was a better motivation for today’s big bad.

[jbk405]

Ah, in that case, it’s a combo of acting skill and background decisions.  it wasn’t deliberate, but resulted from the merging of Scott Bakula’s acting style and the character style.

Scott Bakula’s longest prior role was in Quantum Leap, where despite being a brilliant, multi-phD time traveling superhero, he played the character as a charming, down-to-earth affable guy.  His once-an-episode catch phrase was even a befuddled “Oh, boy”.  That was the kind of performance he was used to giving, and more importantly it was the kind of performance he was good at giving.

In Enterprise, they wrote Jonathan Archer as a character whose words were Important and who was a critical person in the already-extant history of Star Trek.  He was In Command, and he was meant to speak like he was In Command, with frequent Dramatic speeches and Defiance In The Face Of Horrible Odds.  This meant that Scott Bakula was given dialogue and a style that he wasn’t used to acting in, a style which (If I can be a little blunt) he just really isn’t that good at.

He does great as that charming everyman, but he doesn’t have either the voice gravitas or technical skill to give a Big Speech and have it sound like human dialogue.  So it comes off, as you noted, as if he’s doing a bad impersonation of somebody being Dramatic.

They were trying to emulate the success they had with Patrick Stewart and Avery Brooks on TNG and DS9, since they could make dramatic speeches sound convincing (Most of the time.  Even they couldn’t save all of the dialogue they were given).  But they didn’t tailor it to the actor they actually had, so the words on the page and his style in front of the camera didn’t match up.

Due to overwhelming pressure from (1) followers, I'm going to be sharing more of my chronological star trek thoughts. I've seen maybe a dozen trek episodes across all the different shows (mostly TOS and TNG... I don't think I'd seen any Enterprise, Voyager, or DS9)... and the JJ Abrams movies. Most of what I know is from friends who are fans or gifsets on tumblr.

Typically when I work, I put something on in the background. Crit Role or music or a Movie Chain (pick a movie, pick an actor from that movie, pick a movie with that actor, repeat ad infinitum- the last one I did before Trek was 30 movies long from Pitch Perfect to Gunpowder Milkshake)... but then I decided it was taking too long to pick movies each time so why not take more of the choice out of the equation? Look at what @sniperct just said about how there's So Much Trek out right now that it could get them through the strike? Maybe... it's time.

But why watch them by release date when you can watch them chronologically? (I did hear the terrified shouts of 2 whole people when I said this before.)

I'll tag my posts 'chronotrek' so you can follow along or block the tag.

Anyway, I'm near the end of season 2 of Enterprise. Surprisingly Trip has grown on me. I hate how they dress T'Pol and how she is seen as the object of attraction to like every dude on the ship. I think my list of main cast in order of how much I like their characters goes Travis, Trip, Hoshi, Reed, Phlox, T'Pol, Archer.

I still don't understand... why Archer feels the need... to add such long pauses in everything he says. It sounds like... the way people make fun... of Shatner. Was it... intentional?

[absolutebl]

hello!! 🧸 (sorry my english is meh) i just wanted to say i really like your blog. last night instead of sleeping or doing any uni work i’d been reading your posts and making a list of shows i want to watch now lol they’re so interesting and informative

you’ve talked about what your favourite bl pairs should play next. are there any actors who have never played together but you think it would be interesting to watch them on screen together? 🤔 and are there any tropes (from classic yaoi or general romance) which you think not really common in bls at this moment but you would like to see more often? 🤔

Aw, you are too sweet. And I think your English is fab!

are there any actors who have never played together but you think it would be interesting to watch them on screen together?

Ah, I did a post for this, and had ton of fun with it: 

Crazy BL Actor Pairing I'd Love to See

are there any tropes (from classic yaoi or general romance) which you think not really common in bls at this moment but you would like to see more often?

now this one I haven't done, and what a fun question!

Rare Yaoi Tropes I Want To See More of in BL

Best friend's brother

Exactly what it sounds like. This is when (usually) a younger boy has a mad crush on his older brother's best friend. A companion to the stepbrother trope (which, frankly, I would also like to see more of), Lovely Writer almost got there. The younger character can be either the uke or the seme. But it's a fun way to play with all the drama and family issues of the stepbrother trope without being taboo.

Hyung Romances AKA Age Gap

Yep, including teacher/student. Awfully common in yaoi, super rare in BL (see Private Lessons). Did I mentioned I have a weakness for some pretty trashy tropes?

(Japan is providing with Old Fashion Cupcake and Minato’s Laundromat in 2022.) 

Kitsune!

Or whatever take you like on the supernatural spirit fairy animal trope. Foxes are not as common as cat spirits in yaoi, but still, I want this one to happen. And it could, this is easy to adapt and doesn’t require too much CGI. (Fairy Fox is the not good Chinese bromance version.)

Note from the future: Thailand gave us this in the form of Meow Ears Up.

Gay ninjas!

Super common in 90s-00s origin yaoi we have yet to see this one hit the screens. Japan has been resistant to adapting any of their historical stuff (it really doesn’t fit their current approach to BL) and I want them to do it SO BADLY.

Rich kid problems

Cutie Pie is serving this, but I’m thinking more like Heirs, only hella gay. love me some messed up high fashion boys with too much money and not enough sense.

Whipping Boy

I’m trash, remember.

HEA Kinky Yakuza

Another one we haven't gotten.* We have seen pinks (Japanese style soft porn) and some dark yakuza stuff out of Japan, and other countries have played with mafia etc... but Japan itself hasn't given us this one as BL. Again, there was once a ton of super popular yakuza yaoi in the early 2000s that probubly would have been adapted, had there been a BL industry at the time.

* Basically this is KinnPorsche.

Adaptations I want!

I want Korea to do Desire by Maki Kazumi from way back in 2007. Quiet little friends to fuck buddies to lovers, jock/artist pairing, surrounded by a conflicted friendship group. Korea doesn't really do Japanese adaptations (obvs) but they could master this one as it absolutely suits the KBL short form.

I want Taiwan to adapt Brother by Yuzuha Ougi. Trust me, this is a yaoi that matches their style and it’s fucking fantastic. Emphasis on fucking.

I want Thailand to do a remake of I Hear the Sunspot by Yuki Fumino. It’s such a wonderful soft sweet story - college student who is going deaf and the loud brash sunshine boy who’s the only one he can hear. Also it’s a longer series, so there is enough content for Thailand to handle it as a 12 ep run without having to spoil it by inventing anything themselves. Silhouette of Your Voice could have been amazing, but Japan failed us and it. I think this one needs to go to a Thai established pair that can handle high acting chops so: OhmNanon, OhmFluke, OffGun (actually this is totally their thing), EarthMix, or Billkin & PP Krit.

My Summer of You by Nagisa Furuya is a perfect combination of Nitiman meets Seven Days and if Japan is on point they could do it. But they are already doing Our Dining Table by Mita Ori (probably my favorite manga of the last five years) so I don’t want to distract them with another soft special piece.

(I have more on manga and BL here.)

Visual Trope I love that’s underused? 

Neck kisses.

Just a little visual trope. But I love love love neck kisses. I like them in my own life and I like seeing them depicted on screen. Mostly only Taiwan does these.

Uncommon BL & Romance Tropes I Want More Of

CEO Romances

Like secretary/boss, or pretty much anything where it’s an older rich arse type being humbled by love. What’s Zabb Man kinda did this, but I would like more please.

Caring Older Uke

Usually paired with demanding spoiled prince (so like Gui in Oxygen or Chup in La Cuisine although both these are very soft versions). I like this one a lot (it can be successfully combined with teacher/student - just saying). I’m thinking like a really good version of My Esport Genius Brother. 

Celebrity AKA Rockstar Romance

Honestly? I want a Kpop boyband one, but barring that, anything rockstar, actor, etc... We got Given and You Are Ma Boy, but they’re weren’t good enough around the celebrity drama side.

Programmer Problems - so like Love 020 or Falling into Your Smile but GAY AF

I always like a strong premise and experimental BL (like Manner of Death, Not Me, etc...) too, so more PNR (WHERE are my vampires? Kissable Lips doesn’t count), magical realism, cozy mysteries, spy thrillers, that kinda thing.

More?

Once popular tropes that have died

(source) 

[charcubed]

Let's talk about Supernatural 15x07, "Last Call."

Or as I like to call it, "the episode that makes me go feral because it tells us so much about Dean's sexuality, character, and arc." 

YES others have written meta! YES I will talk about it myself for the satisfaction! I LOVE IT SO MUCH.

This post was originally a thread on Twitter and I am crossposting it to my blog.

Alt image IDs are included in that linked Twitter thread!

Join me on this journey.

What's the context of this episode? Dean's been kind of down/depressed, feeling hopeless in the face of the idea that they have to defeat God (and not really working towards that goal much), and he's mid-divorce with Cas. He goes out on this solo case to try to clear his head.

And he ends up at Swayze's Bar. 

 Look, there are many things to be said about this. Dean loves Patrick Swayze. Arguably has a CRUSH on Swayze. It's very tied up in Dean pretending not to like "chick flicks" but he secretly does, which is queer coding. This was a Choice™️.

Speaking of Choices™️: professional actors made many here. Deliberately. 

 Dean is smacked on the ass by a woman and then Lee smacks him on the ass too. Dean and Lee CONSTANTLY have physical familiarity and fond eye contact. I will limit myself to 1 paragraph about this lest I list it all.

My point is that I just really need every person to digest and accept the fact that this is textually bi Dean. Not subtext; it's TEXT. 

Dean and Lee had a relationship. Their history is alluded to in touch and in words. They had an orgy together. Dean's bisexuality is not repressed.

It's also now canon that Dean tries to hide that he can sing well. Most people don't know (like Sam) but some do (Lee). Hence "Eye of the Tiger" callback.

And so: that's also the implication for his sexuality. Dean singing ON STAGE with bi lighting is him being ready to be Out.

They dedicated an entire half an ep at minimum to emphasizing he's bi... and to Dean having a conversation with someone he (initially) trusts about potentially having a break from hunting, and what that could mean.

LEE: You're chasing missing persons, huh? I thought you'd be on to something bigger by now, like the Loch Ness Monster... Bigfoot.

DEAN: Trust me, uh, bigger doesn't always equal better. Besides, who's gonna look out after the little guy? God certainly isn't.

LEE: Damn, brother, that's dark.

DEAN: Yeah, it's been a rough, uh... it's been a rough decade, Lee.

LEE: Yeah.

DEAN: But that's a conversation for a different time, 'cause this, this right here, this is all right.

LEE: Well, I'm glad you approve. This is nothing you can't have, man.

DEAN: Oh, come on. Who's gonna kill the bad guys?

LEE: Somebody else. Dean, how many lives you think you saved, huh? Hundreds? Thousands? You deserve a break, bro. Hell, you might even deserve two.

"But Lee turns out to be a villain!" some might say. "Isn't the point that giving up hunting is bad?" 

Nope. 

Lee's a DARK MIRROR for Dean. He exists to exhibit the truths behind Dean's desires, and then what they'd look like if they turned bad. Take it from him: "I am you."

There are LAYERS here. You can't focus on the dark side and ignore the truths that take place in the (often bi) light. 

The singing? The conversations about taking a break? Throwing men out of the bar, which is framed heroically? "Road House rules" (another Choice™️)?

NONE of that was bad. It shows what Dean wants. 

Things only get bad–literally and visually–when Dean's tied up as Lee suddenly says wrong things in the dark. 

The contrast exists to show that maintaining Goodness is a choice, and Dean would have no problem upholding that.

LEE: It's called a marid. It's a freaky-looking little thing, isn't it? [Lee laughs, and Dean stares at him, incredulous] Ah. As long as you feed it, it gives you money, it gives you health, everything you dreamed of.

DEAN: And so, what, it just costs innocent lives?

LEE: Dean, you and I both know no one's innocent. After everything we've done, aren't... aren't we owed a little happiness, huh? Don't we deserve that much?

DEAN: Listen to yourself. "We're owed." "We deserve." Come on, man. You're not God. Hell, God's not even God.

LEE: Good or bad... the world doesn't care. No one cares, Dean.

DEAN: Well, I do.

LEE: Yeah. And that's what got you here. Now, takes a while to drain a man, but listen to me. Don't worry about it, all right? Don't worry because once you lose a couple of pints, you just fall asleep, and then it'll be over.

[Lee pats Dean on the shoulder]

DEAN: Lee.

LEE: This... this is not how I wanted this to go, Dean. When that blonde girl walked in here last night, I should've know, you know, Dean Winchester, the righter of wrongs, you were gonna keep digging, and you were gonna figure me out. And if it's got to be you or me, well, I got to pick me, man.

"No one cares, Dean."

"Well, I do."

It's a reminder to himself as much as it is to Lee. It's a re-centering of purpose that he sorely needs.

And what's also key? Lee is human, but is now a "monster" in Dean's words. Because Lee lost his ability to care, Dean can't abide by that.

(Side note: bonus for the fact that Lee dies up against a wall by being impaled and he coughs up blood. You know who doesn’t cough up blood in their very weird and unrealistic death scene? Dean in the finale.)

Remember: Lee is a dark mirror for Dean. "I am you." 

By fighting and (tragically) killing Lee, Dean "kills" the darker side of himself. The side that's struggling to keep going right now... AND the side that fears eventually wanting a break means you must be selfish and stop caring.

He can keep going. He can find strength to fight God–and in the end, take a break and CHOOSE peace. It won't make him dark. He's the most caring man on Earth, even when it's hard. That’s reinforced later. 

Isn't he owed a little happiness? And that's not in the having. It's in just being.

The bonus is what's going on with Cas in this episode. 

Dean's clearing his head and finding his center again while Cas is calling him. 

Come home. I need you. Remember what matters.

And again, contrast: Lee turns out not to be "real/true" in the way Dean thought he was. But Cas IS.

And after Dean goes through all of this... he's grounded again, he recognizes that even amongst questions of what God controls there are still choices to be made, he's reminded that letting his caring heart lead him is priority, he's lost another friend... 

He comes home to Cas.

It's awkward. They're still distanced. 

But this episode is a turning point for Dean. He's not angry at Cas anymore, he wants to talk, he's ready to move forward... he just doesn't know how to yet.

And if you follow the through-line... then you get Rowena saying "fix it"... and then after that is the Purgatory prayer.

I just !!! 

S15 is packed with Dean development to hone in towards the end of his arc, but "Last Call" manages to hit SO many buttons. 

• He's always been bi, & is ready to be Out

• He can want a break–& maybe run a bar like the Roadhouse

• Caring is at the core of who he is

It's about the CHOICE. It's about wanting to live your truths, and that "caring" can mean many things–from defeating God and saving the world, to making the hard choices when it counts, to maybe running a bar where people are safe.

14x10 and its matching Texan Star also say hello:

DEAN: How come you always have a boyfriend?

PAMELA: How come you only want what you can't have?

DEAN: Whoa.

PAMELA: Besides, you don't want me. You just like to flirt. I'm a psychic, so I kinda know.

DEAN: All right.

PAMELA: So, still not ready to sell the bar, huh? It's a lot of money.

DEAN: Sell? This bar? This is my dream.

PAMELA; Yeah.

And I recognize that rereading this info is sad(der) now because of what we got in the end, so uh... sorry. 

But that's half the point: it's repeatedly blatantly clear what we were meant to get, down to deliberate echoes in word choice–caring, happiness, deserve, even Roadhouse.

Dean was meant to choose to take a break, maybe run a bar–whether on Earth or in Heaven. At minimum, if Dean was meant to end up in Heaven, he was meant to choose it with eyes wide open. And the next time the phone rang with Cas' name (15x19), he RAN for him. He was VERY ready.

And the whole season tells you that. This episode is just my favorite.

So... thanks for letting me ramble on about it!!! 

DEAN WINCHESTER: BI ICON, ONCE-LOVER OF LEE WEBB, THE MOST CARING MAN ON EARTH WHO DESERVED TO CHOOSE PEACE AFTER GAINING HIS FREEDOM, & SOULMATE TO AN ANGEL

And a very big thank you to the talented kings Jensen Ackles & Christian Kane, and their longstanding friendship. They gave me many rights with their acting choices. 

Here's an iconic bonus for the road.

[txt-fic-recs]

Poly Ships Masterlist

⸻ ૢ་༘࿐a list of ao3 links for poly recs!

❥ • somewhere in between (where stars rest) YEONBINGYU (soulmates au, college au, slowburn, choi beomgyu-centric, angst with happy ending) [ongoing] ⤿ “You can’t help falling in love, hyung,” Taehyun’s voice rings out into the quiet space of Beomgyu’s bedroom. “It just happens naturally, keeps you on your toes, makes you vulnerable.” “It doesn’t matter, Taehyun-ah,” Beomgyu sniffs, using his sleeve to wipe at his runny nose. “I have to move on.” "Alright, alright,” Taehyun sighs, “I'll support you. You say you want to move on, but something tells me that the universe has something else planned for you, hyung. You can control your own actions, but you can't control theirs.” In a world in which everyone is born with a mark that matches their other half, Beomgyu comes to the conclusion that he doesn't have to fall in love with the soulmate he was born with.

❥ • unparalleled throughout history YEONBINGYU (graphic depictions of violence, major character death, naruto au, hurt/comfort, symbolism, childhood friends to lovers) ⤿ A surge of something familiar bursts in Beomgyu’s chest, sings into his bones, and seeps into his veins. This is how he knows he’s not alone.

❥ • rewrite the stars YEONBINGYU (soulmates au, established relationship, tattoo artist choi yeonjun, mild angst, choi yeonjun-centric) ⤿ Soulmates! au in which everyone lives in a world of black and white, and only start seeing colours when they meet their soulmates. Yeonjun's soulmate is in love with someone who lives in a world of black and white. (Yeonjun fell in love in monochrome, and Soobin taught him to love in colours.)

❥ • Check In YEONBINGYU (stage actors au, musicals, established relationship, fluff, angst, hurt/comfort) ⤿ Soobin is sitting, leaning on one arm, his hand beside Beomgyu's head. His body is open towards Yeonjun, so Yeonjun can see Soobin ducking down, getting in Beomgyu's space, and whispering things that make the youngest boy laugh. Yeonjun's stomach does another flip, and he smiles to himself. It's weird, sometimes, watching two people be so in love when you're also in love with both of them. But they all get it. They all understand what it's like. - a day with yeonjun, soobin, and beomgyu on their north american tour. full of feelings, worries, and hotel rooms.

❥ • the pact of our youth YEONTAEBIN (strangers to lovers, mental health institution, hurt/comfort, fluff, humor, asexuality, anxiety, autism, sexual content) ⤿ soobin, yeonjun and taehyun are remarkable teens on the verge of adulthood trying to make sense of themselves, as everyone would expect them to be. but no one really expected them to become psychiatric inpatients, so the fact is, they are completely clueless. what could be the solution, then, if not being completely clueless together?

[canary3d-obsessed]

Lost Tomb Reboot Lewks: Part 13

(Masterpost) (Other Canary Stuff)

Warning: Spoilers for both seasons of The Lost Tomb Reboot and also vaguely for Daomu Biji in general

Look 66 belongs to Ah Ning, who has chosen, for this adaptation, to go with short hair, heavy makeup, and all-black clothes, but with a bit of a club vibe, rather than her more usual tactical vibe. 

The short hair is a weird choice. The whole schtick with DMBJ adaptations is that you have to tell who's who by their costuming and styling, since the associated actors toss roles back and forth faster than Wu Xie and Xiao Ge on a date with Liu Sang. 

Hot guy in a hoodie? Xiao Ge. Slightly dorky but ridiculously charismatic guy who dresses like Joey Ramone? Hei Yanjing. Man who's too old for fluffy bangs and puppy-dog eyes but is working the hell out of them anyway? Wu Xie. Ponytail, gun, and a whole bunch of disposable sidekicks? Ah Ning.

Ah Ning, Lost Tomb 1 version, with her signature ponytail & disregard for human life.

For this look, Ah Ning has gotten rid of her long hair, henchmen, weapons, and the part of her shirt that normally would cover her belly. This is an outfit that says "I am finally ready to fuck Wu Xie." 

Unfortunately she decides to accessorize this outfit with a giant deadly snake. 

This snake, unlike the equivalent snake in uhhhhhmmm a different DMBJ show that Ah Ning might theoretically die in, does not appear to be poisonous or have an unusual instant-kill-you ability. It just squeezes her a little bit, and the boys don't make any attempt to revive her, even though not-breathing is a super survivable condition, if it's corrected quickly. 

This non-poisonous snake accessory is all about killing a woman so that men can feel manpain, and I am kind of offended that this version of Ah Ning went out like that, after being a badass in every other adaptation. 

(more after the cut!) 

The hypothetical other show where a version of this scene perhaps also happens does correct this, by having her talk about her acceptance of the risk of death, and by having the fucking snake be POISONOUS. I am not naming the show because where’s the fun in that? If you watch TLTR first, like I did, you get to be worried about Ah Ning in every other show she’s in, which is exhausting but also kind of fun. (I don’t mind women dying in fiction, as long as their deaths are an important part of their own stories, rather than just being important for the growth of the men around them.)

Thanks to poor accessory choices, Ah Ning and her snake necklace go the same route as Ye Piaopiao and No-Longer-Mute Chick; fortunately Xiao Ge didn't fall for Tattoo Artist Ah Tou or she'd be in the morgue with the rest of them.

Look 67 is young Wu Xie's jungle adventure outfit, featuring a bright white popover jacket with cream color sleeves from Scotch & Soda’s Club Nomade collection. Scotch & Soda have have thoughtfully printed their name on the string so that those of you who share Wu Xie's clothing tastes will know where to shop. You know who you are. 

You would think highly visible bright white would be a bad choice for a jungle adventure, but apparently snakes in these parts are only attracted to goths.

Wu Xie is also wearing wired ear pods, which did not exist whenever this flashback supposedly happened, but if we're cool with sentient crustaceans and clams that can incapacitate a ruthless trained assassin (clams got legs!), we can be cool with ear pods.

The show conveys flashback-Wu-Xie's youth and naiveté by having him smile sweetly, not watch Ah Ning take her clothes off, and not attempt CPR after she gets lightly squeezed by a snake.

Looks 68 and 69 belong to Not Ah Ning, who is played by Liu Yuqi, who also plays Ah Ning. Her makeup is much softer and prettier as this character than as Ah Ning; this character’s job is to be pleasing to men, whereas Ah Ning’s job is to get male underlings killed on the regular, so I guess that makes sense. 

This outfit is an amazing body-hugging soft green jumpsuit with raised quilty detailing on the arms and shoulders. Her jumpsuit perfectly matches the couch she's sprawled on, which is her subtle way of telling Jiang Zisuan that she is a nice comfy place to have a lie down. 

She accessorizes this look with her usual soft wavy brown hair and a scattering of gold finger rings. I think she also accessorizes this with ass pads, because Ah Ning does not appear to be draggin’ this wagon in her scenes. I checked. For science.  

When the first outfit doesn't work, she ditches the subtlety and goes for a Chanel-style suit in black, white, and red, with a with a black leather bustier underneath. 

Unfortunately this is a wasted effort, because the Jiang Zisuan she tries this on is actually Wu Xie in disguise. 

Wu Xie only likes girls if they are 1. secretly manipulating him while acting like a tiny adorable sidekick, 2. trying to kill him repeatedly while adventuring together, 3. planning to kill him as soon as the roads are clear but willing to bone in the meantime, or 4. are a skin effigy with a sentient crustacean in their head.

Sorry, Not Ah Ning; this was a good effort. 

Look 70 features Wu Xie in a white thermal shirt, dark blue jeans, and fake facial hair. This is a good look for sitting with your not-quite girlfriend and wondering how you both managed to have romances with Bai Yu in parallel universes. (OP recently watched Love O2O, which is a trip for fans of DMBJ, Guardian, or feminism)

Fortunately Wu Xie doesn’t know that his second-favorite doctor/Zhan Rishan’s girlfriend also had a romance with Bai Yu or his mind would be entirely blown. 

This is a soft, comfortable look, perfect for torturing someone, with help from your first-favorite doctor, by pretending to poison someone with nicotine, all so you can have a few moments of quality time with a cigarette before said doctor takes them away again. 

Wu Xie's cigs are stored in a buttery-soft leather case that completely covers the brand name of the cigarettes, so apparently cdramas don’t go in for ciggy product placements. 

Wo Xie wears this outfit with a silvery-metal watch with a black leather wrist strap. The watch appears to be round, and it probably tells time. (If you’re new to the Lewks series: I lack watch knowledge and that’s not likely to change.)

Wu Xie finally peels off his fake facial hair so we can see his pretty face again, only to replace the facial hair with an entire fake face. Fortunately, this face, belonging to actor Wu Lipeng, is also pretty. 

Look 71 belongs to Wu Xie, initially (for this outfit) played by Wu Lipeng until his inevitable unmasking. So many actors have played Wu Xie, this whole disguise thing is barely worth blinking at. Wu Lipeng does a nice job changing his mannerisms to play Wu Xie, and this whole schtick eventually gives us Zhu Yilong's delightful performance as Wang Meng, so even though we eventually get way too much of not-Zhu-Yilong in the role, I’m good with it.

This outfit features black jeans, black tactical boots & gloves, and Ah Ning’s coin bracelet, although it’s mostly hard to see the bracelet. The outfit’s main feature is a possibly-leather jacket that’s been molded into a hideous and disturbing voronoi pattern. 

This jacket is probably very expensive and took a lot of work to craft, but it makes him look  like he’s wearing a Glad Force Flex garbage bag. I mean, I guess that's cool. 

This outfit is good for several episodes worth of adventures, including getting tied up and being sassy...

...and underwater cave exploration, which is totally a thing that a person with critically damaged lungs can do.  

This outfit is good for homoerotic wrestling...

...and also for heteroerotic wrestling.

This is also a good outfit for being gently cradled in the arms of your doctor, while you massage your throat in order to swallow what he's putting in your mouth.

The fingerless gloves are useful for helping Xiao Bai get out of not one, but two different situations in which she stepped on a trap without realizing it, requiring Wu Xie to get down on the ground and have a tense encounter with her foot. 

Scenes like this are where costuming really makes a difference. In this shot, we we watch a stunt hand (Zhu Yilong has never had that long of a thumbnail in his life) hold a wire steady, while a stunt foot is pulled out from under it.  

This shot includes a lot of visual texture and interest, from the hatch lines on the palm of the glove to the cross-striping of the boot lace. The complexity of this glove and this boot help to hold our attention when they’re in the frame, allowing the tension of the scene to build, instead of dissipating when the viewer runs out of things to look at.

Bonus Look 1

Carrying all that tragic baggage has given Jiang Zisuan spectacular arm muscles.

Bonus Look 2

Zhu Yilong with not-fake facial hair. 

Daaaaaamn.

[accioecho]

Lee Da Hee for GQ Korea

"Everything becomes memories in the end. You should always strive to have a positive energy."

Feel free to share this translated interview! Though I would appreciate if you could credit me by linking back to this blog or tagging me on Twitter ^_^

GQ: But... uh, why do you look so happy? You’re looking at me with such a happy expression that I don’t know what to do right now.

LDH: Hahaha. No but if I kept listening with a blank expression, I would come off as cold looking. And you would go: “Are you in a bad mood?” So I try to smile more. Otherwise I would come off as cold looking.

GQ: That’s quite a big difference. I got startled when you pulled a straight face.

LDH: Right, it looks like I’m angry. But I’m not, so this is why I try to smile more. If I don’t smile like this, people tend to think I’m cranky. Of course when I get angry, I have a temper, but I’m not usually like that.

LDH: And it goes both ways, it’s easier for me to open up to someone if that person is smiling instead of sporting an expressionless face.

GQ: You were laughing/smiling so brightly that I was kind of hypnotized.

LDH: Hahaha

GQ: When you appeared in the drama “Beauty Inside”, you weren’t the typical villain wearing a red lipstick but were the kind of villain to wear a new, nude shade.

LDH: Ohh, that’s a very nice way to put it.

GQ: Really?

LDH: A nude tone villain. This is the first time I’m hearing this expression, I like it. Yes, up until then, secondary female characters usually tried to win someone’s heart or because they lacked attention and love, they tended to bother the female lead. But “Beauty Inside” was different. It was a different kind of role. I played a villain but my character wasn’t hateful. She had her own convictions and that’s why she was so interesting.    

GQ: Kang Sara was that kind of character, played by Lee Da Hee.

LDH: This is why I didn’t want to play the typical secondary character, the typical second female lead. Yes she was given a fancy background but I also wanted to try something new, something different. Not something that could be shown through strong makeup, I wanted to add a layer of depth to her style.

GQ: I think we could feel the difference hence why it was so interesting. It was obvious that you studied this role a lot and this perfected style has stuck to you, the actress.

LDH: Well, first of all, I find it fun to radically search for something new. In a way that doesn’t stand out too much, while still being faithful to the character, I try to bring out the best of what I can do. Back when I was younger, I had no clue about all that so I just did what I was told to do. As I matured, I discovered what were my weaknesses, what to cover/hide etc. For example, you might think that I’m skinny, and that all my clothes fit me well. But I have a big bone structure so clothes don’t fit all that easily. But because I know this about me, I’m able to adapt,  know how to find the right clothes to try to keep looking pretty. Thanks to the GQ photoshoot, I got to try out this colorful mascara for the first time. And it’s so much fun. As I experience new things one by one, I’m able to see what’s right for me and what’s not.

GQ: It might be insensitive/rude to say this to an actress who has a career spanning 20 years, but I feel like the name Lee Da Hee has become clearer to me since “Beauty Inside”.

LDH: No it’s not insensitive. I’m really thankful that you remember me from that role. No matter how recent the drama is, the point is that you remember me because I left you a good impression. I really appreciate it. To be honest, a lot of people remember me from my role in Beauty Inside. People actually think I didn’t play in many projects before that.

GQ: But you did consistently star in various projects.

LDH: Yes, but I guess they weren’t memorable roles. I don’t think I played characters that stayed in people’s minds. Beyond the character and the role in itself. A drama can be loved by a lot of people, but beyond that, when I watch a show as a viewer, there are some actors that leave a deep impression in the way they play their characters. I wonder if I lacked that kind of aspect. I kept thinking to myself that maybe there was something missing in my acting that didn’t leave a memorable impression.

GQ: You left quite a strong impression after playing roles like Kang Sara in Beauty Inside and Cha Hyeon in Search: WWW. But more recently in LUCA: the beginning, I feel like you shed that strong image. If you found a type of role that fit you, you could have just kept on playing the same kind of characters, but it looks like you’re not afraid to radically change your image.

LDH: You’re right, I wanted to do something different. I wanted to show a different side, something that differed from the bright roles I usually played. After Beauty Inside and Search: www, I was afraid of being type casted. I didn’t want people to think I always played the same kind of roles. But I think I was was too confident when I chose to play in LUCA. I thought I could do anything.

GQ: You thought you could do anything but it didn’t turn out this way?

LDH: Even my mom thought the same thing. That it wasn’t a really good fit. In a few words, she thought my acting felt a bit forced. Hahaha. That it didn’t really flow well. The main takeaway is that I tried something different. If it turns out to be a good fit, then it’s good and if it doesn’t, it means I can just find something that does.    

GQ: Your mother sounds like the type of person who doesn’t mince her words.

LDH: My mom is very level headed. Just by looking at my back, she can tell if I was focused or thinking about something else. I spent a lot of time with my mom, even more so than with friends, and I also cried a lot in front of her. If I ask her “Mom, what’s wrong with me”, she’ll tell me not to think these kind of thoughts, that whatever I’m thinking is not true. We had a lot of moments like that.

GQ: You looked so cheerful today that I didn’t think you could also have rough times.

LDH: Why wouldn’t I? I went through times of depression when I would think, “Am I charismatic enough?”, “Do I lack something as an actress?”. There were times when my self-esteem was very low.

Since I’m tall, I used to have Directors who always said “you don’t match, you don’t match” (with fellow actors). Since I couldn’t do anything about my height, I thought that I could at least work on my body, make myself smaller. So I worked really hard on my diet. I used to eat rice cake soup that my mom used to make using beef broth, once every day. My mom followed along and did the diets with me. Every time. You can guess what kind of mom she is, right? I used to say: “Mom, should we at least drink soju since we only had one meal today?” And we’d share a bottle.

GQ: Hahaha, I see that you don’t hide your positive energy.

LDH: Everything becomes memories in the end. You should always strive to have a positive energy. And try not to think negatively. This way, you can find more motivation when an opportunity comes along, and this is also how more opportunities come up. I know that if I don’t love myself, I’ll end up being depressed and have a low self-esteem. So starting with myself, I also try to be nice to everyone, to compliment them. Let’s not be hurtful, and let’s try not to say mean things. I try to tell myself I’m a good person, and I project that to others as well. Let’s be nice to each other. Let’s be someone that gives off a good energy.

GQ: Why did you hurt your knee?

LDH: Ah, this? (Points to her left knee). I rode one of those electric scooters and fell as I tried to avoid an electric pole.

GQ: It must have hurt a lot if you fell while riding it.

LDH: I’m okay now. It was a bit concerning at first, but I’m just glad I didn’t hurt my face. It’s too bad I fell while riding it for the first time, but I wanted to try it so I learned my lesson now. I don’t even look at the scooters now. I know they’re too dangerous for me.

GQ: You made a very decisive conclusion based on your experience.

LDH: Yes, I should never try to ride a scooter again.

GQ: I also see a scar on your neck. Do you fall often?

LDH: Hahaha. No, I was washing a necklace. It’s a necklace made with my grandmother’s ring but the edge is a bit sharp. I got scratched while washing it a bit hastily.

GQ: Did you grow up under your grandmother’s care?

LDH: No I didn’t... actually both of my grandparents died in a car accident. They were so healthy so I thought they would live for a long time, but they suddenly passed away. When I didn’t work for a while, they used to say “When are you going to make money”, or “how long are you planning to live like that, without earning any money for your mom and dad”. It hurt me sometimes. But whenever I appeared on tv, they were the first ones to watch, and they always asked me when I would be on TV, on which channel... and when the time came, they always made sure to turn the tv on and watch my shows, and whenever we met, they told me they were proud of me, holding my hands and hugging me. I always think about these times. I miss them. Very much.

GQ: This is very moving. I believe these emotions and feelings make who you are.

LDH: I might sound like a crazy person, hahahah, but I have a picture of my grandma and grandpa next to my bed, and I always speak to them: “Grandma, I’m back”. If I’m upset about something, I say “Grandma, this thing just happened and this is so hard. I miss you.” - that’s how I cope and move on. This is how I try my best everyday. It makes me focus on what’s important. My family, tomorrow (the future) and all the things I love.

[mimiri22-6]

Let's do this. One last time.

Ducktales 2017. I didn't think I was ready for the end, but the finale was too perfect to be sad nor angry.

There's so much to say-too much to say...and I'm going to try my best to say all of it.

EVERYONE IS HERE!! ENDGAME WHO?! DUCKTALES!!!!!

Seeing Webby and Scrooge interactions now, after watching this once, is just-They're So Soft! AND everything is just-AH I love it. It's so weird, but when is the family tree not screwy(also, Webby=Scrooge's clone? Webby=female? Trans Scrooge=Cannon?! I think Fucking So!)

Aaaaaaannd that's all we get from Gladstone and Fethry. If there's one thing I wish was in this episode more it would be more cousin interactions and Daisy. Though, Daisy not being too into it makes sense. Loved what we got of her tho. At least we got a little bit of them this episode, it was already pretty character packed

Well...Launchpad is only half wrong.

Oh wow. Oh Wow, I love this dynamic between LP, Drake, and Fenton...ot4? because I refuse to leave Gandra out. I love how Drake doesn't know about Fenton and Gizmo while it seems like everyone else in the world does. Still, LP/Drake and Gandra/Fenton some of my faves. So good

OH YEAH! Even the other 2 Caballeros are here!!

And the last adventure STARTS

I find it Fantastic how Dewey and Launchpad will probably die thinking F.O.W.L used the last level of a videogame as their secret layer layout

*sigh* This is why I avoid previews and wish I was better at avoiding theories from after those previews. I would have been more surprised and probably would have enjoyed this ep even more if I had Nothing to expect. But the theories were right. Tho, I did not expect how (or should I say Who) Webby was cloned from...though also I was spoiled by that when I was looking for the ep. Some ass used "Scrooge is Webby's dad" as a video title. I didn't think it was real, but I was wrong.

Awwww. Don has such a soft spot for kids

I love Lena and her development.

...*sigh* ok. "you've already got sisters" with this line, I am obligated to drop the Webby/Lena ship. I'm sorry, but it's one of my many rules for being ok with a ship. If the characters Ever say, even just once as an afterthought, they see each other as siblings or something similar, I will see them as that. It's why I've never been ok and have been uncomfortable with Shiro/Keith since Keith saved Shiro from...his clones...huh. So, from now on, I'm going to be Very uncomfortable with anything Weblena...even though the thought of them in the future was cute

HOW does a show about building ottomans have plot???

I wasn't sure how to feel about the clones All throughout this

OOOOOOOOOOOOOO HUEY JUST FIRST NAMED BEAKLEY!!!!!

GOLDIE AND DAISY ARE ON THE BOARD!!! SCORE!!

Oooooh. That picture of Webby's parents...is fake. It's like some picture Beakley took off the internet.

I saw a post saying how Della had to convince Donald to go on one last adventure and how she had to watch him almost die, but she really Didn't. She helped him pack and she was ready to let Donald go on his adventure("but Daisy's my adventure" They are too damn cute for their own damn good. I love them. donsy for the win), but an actual Crisis came up and he had to stay. Donald nearly dying by void was not Della's fault and if I see any more posts about how she roped Donald into a death mission, I will go up a wall and break a neck on my way down

Man, it's weird hearing this and knowing that Webby's parents don't exist

Wow! Beakley just knocked out Scrooge! Damn!

Oooh! The girls are fighting

...Woah. I just realized, the blood and brain of Scrooge McDuck and the training of Bentina Beakley. Webby is even more of a beast than we knew.

IS THAT DEVELOPMENT I HEAR!!! YOU KEEP THOSE KIDS BEHIND? YOU LOSE!!! GOOD DAY SIR!

Pepper. Just Pepper. She seems like one of your parent's nice coworkers that brings you brownies and pinches your cheeks

"Look after your brother." YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH I JUST WANNA-AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DADRO YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!! IT IS OFICIALLY BOYD GEARLOSE NOW!! YEEEEE!!!!

I also really like that you can't tell which Gyro is telling that to

God, I Fucking Love the concept that is Manny. He's one of those things that if someone asked you about him outside of the fandom, you wouldn't even know where to start. It's absolutely FanFuckingTastic. He's the most magical thing in the universe? Fuck Yes, give that to me Now!

HE SPEAKS!!!!!!(I couldn't place his voice actor, but I when I looked him up I realized recognized him for Glossaryck from SVTFOE)

(Edit: Just found out that the scene with Manny was a Gargoyles ref. Nice!)

Once again, I love everything about LP, Drake, and Fenton

And then Lena Died

Aww, they both have such soft spots for children

LUDWIG VON DRAKE?!?!!!?! WHAT THE FUCK?!

(that had to be a different font because really, what the fuck)

He really did just say he was too busy to die. This duck is too powerful

(I really just don't have too much to say between all of this. I just love all of it)

Woo! Louie with the motivation!

Pft-how both of them are singing? Love to see it...wait, we don't see Don Karnage after this...DID HE DIE IN THAT CRASH?! DID DEWEY COMMIT HIS FIRST MURDER?!

"Welcome home, April." I hate you.

Of course he dabs

"he was like this when we found him." Nice to know Gos knows what to do in the event that she kills someone

Oh that's horrendous. I hate that

"Now, let's get down to business." TO DEF[get's shot]

Why is Manny like actually the best?

God, Drake and LP really are two halves of a whole idiot huh? They're soulmates, your honor

"I. Am." "Not alone in this." That was so sweet, but also JUST TELL HIM!!

And now Glom is dead

Oh, that's a lot of mind control

"Even by our standards, this is a weird day." Couldn't say it better, Lena

"How do you think Della found out about the Spear of Selene?" OH, YOU MOTHERFU

"Oh, Bradford, how villainous." DAMN! HE REALLY DID JUST DO THAT, HUH?!

"MOOOM!" "NOOO!" OH NO, MY HEART! IT FUNCTIONS!

"Do you know how replaceable clones are?" Oh yeah, that's right. You're probably not the og Gyro

Man, we don't ever have Von Drake for long but I always love him

Those lights are really only there for dramatic effect, aren't they?

...Close enough.

Launchpad moment! Yeah!!!

HEY! I just noticed. While wearing the suit, Launchpad didn't crash...idk what to do with this info

The fine print is usually good to read...we people just don't do it apparently

"...your most trusted ally?" *picks Donald* Wow. That's right there with the feels ain't it

"it's not worth the risk." Fuck, I love them

Oh that sounds so weird. Scrooge has never been a dad, always Uncle. So Weird

And Gandra, Gyro, and Von Drake are dead. There is a Body Count this episode

"Donald Duck." "Uncle Scrooge." I SEE YOU! I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE! AND I LOVE IT!

Hehe. From Bitchford to bird brain.

EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS ENDING SCENE IS THE BEST!

Beakley thinking she's no longer accepted? Nah, she was granny first and foremost

ANOTHER FENRA KISS?! DON'T MIND IF I DO!

DADRO AND GOSALYN AND DRAKE?! LOVING IT!

MORE FRIENDSHIP BRACELETS?! WOO!

DONALD IMMEDIATELY ADOPTING JUNE AND MAY?! ONLY THE BEST FROM HIM!!!!

PROTECTIVE SCROOGE?! YOU DON'T SEE ME COMPLAINING!

"We're smarter" "We're tougher" "We're sharper" And we'll earn our way square." AH-I'M GOING DOWN LIKE THE SUNCHASER, GUYS

AND THE END CREDITS WILL NEVER BE MATCHED!!!!!

I don't know what else to say.

This show was amazing from beginning to end. I may not have cried, but I didn't need to cry. It wasn't sad and there was nothing bittersweet about it. Just pure perfection, just like the rest of the show.

Perfectly Preen, not a fether out of place.

Goodnight Ducktales, you were perfect

[teawaffles]

There’s No Business Like Show Business: Chapter 2

The next day.

After finishing his work at the mansion, Bond headed to Whitechapel’s Leman Street, where Maya and her company normally held their rehearsals. [1]

Walking down the noisy street was not just Bond, but also three other employees of the Moriarty household. One of them was Fred Porlock.

“It would’ve been fine if only you came along, Fred…… But thanks for joining us anyway, you two.”

Bond directed that to Jack Renfield and Sebastian Moran, who were walking a little behind him.

As Fred was a master of disguise, Bond had asked him to contribute his opinion on the performance too when Jack and Moran decided to tag along. Now the four of them were on their way to the rehearsal — with Louis’ permission of course.

Jack roared with laughter.

“No, you don’t have to thank me. I’ve watched my fair share of theatre, so I thought I could help them out, even if it’s from an amateur’s perspective,” said the old butler, nodding as he reminisced about those good old days.

“You’re probably just after the young girls from the theatre company, aren’t you old man?” Moran said, half in disgust. “Bond said this Maya chairwoman is a dashing lady in her own right, so I came along to feast my eyes on—— Ow, that hurt!”

Jack had clapped Moran on the head, as a warning to not shoot his mouth off.

“The only one here chasing women is you. Really, you didn’t even finish your chores properly before coming here.”

“I did my part just fine. For once, I’m not skipping out on work.”

“Rubbish — I did a check before we left and found some cigarette butts in the hallway. Don’t you dare annoy Louis any further.”

“……W-Well, the more the merrier, right?”

“…………”

Listening to their usual argument at the back of the group, Bond smiled wryly, while Fred was silent.

Finally, they had reached their destination. Waiting in front of the theatre was Maya, and her little sister Mae.

“Mister Bond!”

“Hey, haven’t seen you since yesterday.”

Mae waved her arms up and down in excitement, while Bond greeted them with a smile.

“S—sorry. Normally, she would play with the other children near our place, but today she insisted on coming with me…… By the way, um, who might these, d—dignified gentlemen be?”

“Ah, they work at the same household as me. The short one here is Fred. The somewhat scary-looking one is Moran. And this dandy old gentleman is Mr Jack. If you’re alright with it, I thought you could use their input as well.”

As Bond introduced them, the three men also greeted their host. But Maya seemed a little perplexed.

“……Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to come here in a big group,” Bond admitted, looking slightly uncomfortable.

“No, no.” Maya hurriedly waved her hands. “I—I’m really grateful to be able to, hear valuable feedback from, so many people. For now, let’s not stand here to talk, please come in……”

Maya guided them into the theatre, stooped in a self-abasing posture. Her faltering voice was much as the same as from their previous encounter, but today, nerves seemed to have crept in as well.

“She has a sort of shadow about her, but that has its own charm. Like the transient beauty of a young widow, don’t you think?”

“She’s pretty, for sure, but not really my type. More like the kind of woman who complicates things when you break up with her.”

“Um, sorry you two, but if you could just keep your voices down,” chided Bond, as Jack and Moran whispered about the chairwoman behind her back.

Right after the entrance was a cramped space. The box seats above them looked hastily constructed; in truth, the interior decorations made it seem more appropriate to call this place a playhouse, rather than a proper theatre.

But their guide had only praise. “The manager here is, a really nice person; whenever we say we want to practise, he’s always happy to lend it to us. There are performances held at night, so we can only use it during the day.”

“He trusts you, doesn’t he.”

Hearing her speak with such sincere gratitude, Bond was quietly impressed by her character. Perhaps her dark aura easily invited misunderstanding, but she was definitely genuine at heart.

“Speaking of which, Miss Maya, you said that you’re the director for this performance, but surely someone else is responsible for the sets and the arrangements at the other theatre during this time?”

“Another member is in charge of the sets, but the negotiations and the like, w—were handled by me. Even so, the manager of the larger theatre — a nobleman — had actually approached us to be the opening act for another company, and I just accepted his invitation.”

“Still, isn’t it great to be invited to perform on a bigger stage, even if it’s just as an opening act?”

“Yes; for people like us — a theatre company from the slums, we don’t have many chances to show the world what we can do, so everyone’s doing their very best.”

Saying that, Maya secretly clenched her fists. Surely the one working the hardest was none other than Maya herself.

There was no audience in the stalls, and on the stage were a number of men and women — likely the company members themselves — doing light warm-ups and vocal exercises. A few of the children he’d met yesterday were also frolicking about on stage.

One exceptionally tall man on the stage had noticed Bond and the others enter the hall, and spoke up.

“Oh, is that the rumoured theatre master?”

Moran whistled at this unusually grand title.

“Theatre master, eh. A fitting name considering your experience, Bond.”

“Fufu, I’m honoured.”

Bond accepted it with his innate courage and composure. Then, he went onto the stage with Maya, while the other three sat in the stalls at the far end, so as to not stand out and interfere with the rehearsal.

The company members each stopped what they were doing and lined up in wait.

“Everyone, this is Mr Bond, who will be watching our performance today,” introduced Maya.

Right then and there, her voice had become clearer and stronger. A little taken aback by the sudden change in her attitude, Bond took a quick look around the room.

“Hello to you all. I’m looking forward to what you have for me today,” he said solemnly, as he bowed.

“We’ll do our best!” The company members bowed their heads in unison.

From their greeting, Bond could feel the the quality of their bearing, and the strength of their cohesion. Not only that, the tension he himself once felt when he stood on stage came rushing back in waves.

He switched his frame of mind from that of a special agent, to that of an actor, and looked over Maya and her company with an earnest gaze.

“Well then, without further ado, please show me what you’ve got.”

“Yes!”

Even though his instructions had been given with no introductory remarks, they asked no unnecessary questions, and jumped straight into preparation. Even though they had only put up plays in cheap theatres, Maya’s company already displayed the high level of professionalism they had developed.

“Miss Maya, what’s the programme for today?” Bond asked, as he moved to the row of seats right in front of the stage.

Maya was also directing Mae and the other children to sit down. “We’re starting with ‘The Red Shoes’, followed by ‘The Little Mermaid’, and lastly, ‘The Little Match Girl’.”

“Hmm, fairytales, I see.”

The unexpected subject matter piqued his interest.

In a time when Shakespeare was all the rage, to perform children’s literature in a proper theatre, and a serious scripted play at that — now this was a bold move.

But as someone who liked to do things unconventionally, that was precisely why their play intrigued Bond. Yesterday’s playful rendition of “The Little Match Girl” was probably inspired by it as well.

Then, the tall man who noticed Bond earlier spoke up.

“Ain’t it interesting? Maya always makes sure to write plays that even us poor dumb folk understand. Today’s script is also entirely her work,” he said cheerfully.

“Weren’t you in charge of creating the play too? You should be able to write at least one decent line of dialogue.”

At the man’s self-satisfied tone, a woman beside him sighed. But he ignored her pointed comment and carried on.

“There were a bunch of people who’d always thought ‘Hamlet’ and ‘Macbeth’ and the like were plain boring; but after Maya broke them down into something easier to follow, they’ve gotten hooked onto Shakespeare.”

“Being able to interpret works in a way that everyone can understand…… A wonderful talent indeed.”

But if you were to put on a proper production of Shakespeare in an unregulated theatre like this, you would be caught by the censors. To avoid that, incorporating music and the like into their productions was a brilliant adaptation on their part.

Bond had said that last part out loud, and the man thanked him for his words of praise. The members of the company had shown their admiration for Maya, but the woman herself took in a deep breath, as if to hide her embarrassment.

In other words, in order to put on a play that everyone could follow, the answer she'd arrived at was “fairytales”. Although it may be the best choice given the short length of the opening act……

“I’m sitting next to Mister Bond!”

“Hey, no fair!”

Bond had been absorbed in thought about the contents of the play. Nearby, the children were scrambling for the best spots. Having won the seat to the left of Bond, Mae asked him a question.

“Mister Bond, do you like ‘fairy tales’?”

That pulled him out of his thought process for a moment, and Mae smiled.

“Yeah. I read them when I was a child.”

“I like them too, because Maya and the rest always read them in a fun way—”

“Me too!” The other children raised their hands and shouted. Reading stories aloud while acting out the roles was indeed a theatrical way of reading to children.

However, Mae immediately pouted in frustration.

“But I really hate that story.”

“……Why is that?”

“The little girl always looks so sad. I tried asking Maya to give it a happy ending, but she just said that we have to ‘respect the intent of the story’ and didn’t listen.”

Her words helped Bond discern the true nature of the incongruity he'd felt.

As Mae had said, all three stories had their protagonists fall into unfortunate circumstances and perish. It was true that many fairytales were cruel, but there were others with happy endings too. Was there some hidden intent behind these choices?

As Bond pondered the new question that surfaced in his mind, Mae leaned in towards him.

“Mister Bond, do you also think it’s important, what Maya said? No matter how sad a story is, can’t we make it happy on our own?”

She asked that question with clear eyes. Bond thought for a few seconds, before responding.

“It’s true that it’s important to understand the intention of the original story. If you change its contents haphazardly, the fans of the story would be upset. I think your sister is the type who would take that very seriously.”

Mae glanced down in disappointment at his level-headed answer, but Bond continued.

“However, if we were all afraid of criticism, then nothing new would ever be made. If you have something you really want to tell others, then I think it’s possible to add a new interpretation to a story. After all, one form of respect is to show the world how you would’ve done it.”

“……Oh I see!”

Mae brightened up, and Bond smiled. Her question was one that had always, and would continue to vex all interpreters of stories. But at the very least, he didn’t want to make a decision on which way was right.

Just as their conversation had come to an end, it seemed the preparations for the performance were now complete.

“Without further ado, let us begin.”

Standing on a platform, Maya gave a bow, and with that the curtain rose.

Footnotes:

[1] Leman Street is a little to the north-east of the Tower of London and St. Katharine Docks, and within walking distance of both.

T/N: Is this chapter some meta-level commentary on the series itself?! omg

[jjuzoir]

Once This is Over • 「A. Keiji」

Summary: After what felt like ages of not being able to hold you, Akaashi can finally wake up next you again.

A/N: I’ve been suffering from some serious writers block with the request for some reason^^ so i decided to try writing something !! the requests are happening,,, eventually lolol

Word Count: 1617

You don’t really remember what happened last night, you’d stayed up working on a paper in hopes of greeting your boyfriend when he came home and yet, somehow, woke up neatly tucked in your bed with your boyfriend, Akaashi, cuddling you like you were a plushie with no recollection of ever seeing him yesterday.

His arm is thrown over your waist, toned muscles laying heavy against you (Keiji never quite stopped working out even after volleyball) as you tried maneuvering towards your phone to check the time - depending on the time you’d have to leave early for class.

“Mmhk,” you hear a groan from behind you, “Stop moving, too early.”

You let out a small laugh at his words but ignore them anyway, opting to reach your arms out again and finally grabbing your phone.

“I said,” he tries to swat your hand away from the phone to no avail, “T’ stop moving.”

“Keiji,” you groan, “Stop being a baby.”

Instead of answering your boyfriend just huffs air into your neck in annoyance causing you to jump at the contact, you slap tap his arm in annoyance before turning on your phone.

“S’ too bright.” He complained, burying his head into your neck.

“Your eyes are closed, Akaashi.” You roll your eyes, he could be such a baby early in the mornings, “Ah, it’s seven, still got some time then.”

“Please,” he slurs his words, “just shh, ‘M sleepy.”

“Oh, really?” You laugh, leaving your phone on the edge of the bedside table you sink back into his arms - earning a happy groan from the editor.

As you two lay in bed for a while, your eyes start to feel heavy with sleep - you laid beside the man you loved under warm blankets, shielded away from the cold air in your room in his arms, the sun leaked from the curtains as the streets began filling with sounds.

You hear him yawn, his eyelashes tickle your back as he blinks and you giggle at the sensation until you feel cold feet resting against your legs.

“You’re warm,” he comments, his voice clearer than before, “Stop struggling, come on.”

“Stop pressing your cold feet against me, Akaashi!” You scold him, you wiggle in his arms a bit more before giving up, he simply wasn’t giving up.

“No good morning?” He teases, you feel his feet press harder against you and you shiver.

“You’ll get a good morning when waking up next to you actually goes well.” You laugh incredulously, you didn’t worry about him taking what you’d said wrong - even if your words were harsh you knew he wouldn’t take them to heart.

“I love you too, sweetheart.”

Neither of you says anything for a while, you rub your eyes and sigh, you hear another yawn tearing through Akaashi’s throat. You two decide to just bask in the silence - as much silence as there can be in a street like yours for a little while longer. Your classes on Sunday started at a quarter till eight and lasted until twelve, and his shift started at eight and lasted till ten, so this was pretty much the only time you two had together this week and next.

“Thank you,” you whisper, you take his arms and wrap it around your head - taking his hand and playing with his fingers you continue, “for, uh, carrying me to bed.”

“Oh? It’s nothing.” Keiji sits up but doesn’t take his arm away from you, he reaches for a remote before turning on the small TV in your shared room.

“It’s not nothing, though,” you mumble, eyes fixed on the small screen as he flickered through the channels, “it was, well- it was nice but I wanted to surprise you.”

He doesn’t say anything and you look up to his sitting form, he sat there with a blue shirt and oversized pajama pants that didn’t match - his hair was a mess, his eyes were squinted as he tried figuring out what he was watching since he didn’t like putting his glasses on in the morning - he looked like a mess, not like the perfect everyday Akaash Keiji you saw out in the streets and yet, seeing him like this, relaxed and calm with you, you think it’s the best he’s ever looked. Especially with the soft smile that had his cheeks lifting up and taking a red tone.

“Seeing you passed out on the desk was a surprise, trust me,” he laughs, “it was like seeing Bokuto in high school studying for maths again.”

“Hey,” You elbow him, “are you friendzoning me?”

“Maybe,” he teases, his eyebrows raise as he looks down at you, “for all you know me and Bokuto have a secret house in Korea and are planning on leaving this week, he’ll quit volleyball and I’ll become a professional voice actor.”

“Do I get paid for keeping it a secret from the media that you escaped and Kotaru fled the country?”

“No but you get the house and the dog.”

You let out a loud laugh at his serious expression causing Keiji to break character and smile at you.

“Whew, anyway as much as I’d love to stay and hear about your plans to abandon me and our dog for your best friend,” you try peeling his arm off but he didn’t budge at all, his smile only growing larger the more you struggled, “I’ve got classes.”

“It’s Saturday,” he rolls his eyes at, “your classes are tomorrow.”

“It’s not- it’s not Saturday,” you furrow your eyebrows, “it’s Sunday.”

Emerald green eyes catch yours, the soft morning sun reflecting on the green sea in his eyes, and you would’ve drowned in them if he hadn’t been looking at you like you were crazy. In response, you reach out for your phone once more - letting his arm fall from your embrace, Keiji sits himself up once more and leans over to watch over you - you unlock your phone and sure enough; Saturday, seven thirty something.

“Huh… I could’ve sworn it was Sunday.” You mumble, you remember checking your phone last night and seeing it was Saturday.

“Maybe you got the days mixed up.” He suggests.

“Yeah, maybe.” You let your phone fall down besides your pillow before turning around and snuggling up to Akaashi, gripping his shirt tight as you hugged him.

He laughs a bit at your actions, it’d been some time since you two had been able to lay besides in bed together while, well, awake - normally you had classes and he had work in the morning, only arriving late into the night.

“How was work yesterday?” You ask once he’s settled on the sports channel (they were airing a MSBY match from yesterday Akaashi had missed).

“Not great,” he sighs, his free hand comes to mess with his hair before falling into his lap, “the new intern, Haruto, accidentally got half of the files on his computer deleted. Basically half of his work, gone, just like that- I had to spend the whole day talking with tech to see if we could get back the scans or- or something, turns out Haruto can’t organize his files but man is he good at deleting them.”

You laugh at his rant, he’d talk about Haruto often, an intern he’d been assigned who had a knack for getting into trouble and dragging your boyfriend along with him.

“I’m hoping yours was better.” He raises his eyebrows and looks down at you.

“Oh, definitely. I managed to finish the first few assignments, only got this one,” you gesture towards your desk, “and a project before I’m done. Should be easy from here on, I think.”

As you go on about your assignments, Keiji lays his head on yours - his cheeks pressed against your hair as you ramble about your stupid partner who you found out had been ditching class - as he listened to you talk. He could feel his breath even out and his heart calm down into a steady, relaxing rate. It wasn’t often that you two could be together like this and he planned on enjoying this as much as he could.

As much as the black haired man wanted to complain about not being able to be with you more often, how it’d put a strain in your relationship, he found himself appreciating you more and more; now that you weren’t there often he realized how important you were to

him. He knew this schedule wasn’t forever, and lord was he thankful - he didn’t think he’d be able to live forever seeing so little of you -, he was getting a promotion later this year and you’re graduating from your final year at the same time, he couldn’t wait for your schedules to be coordinated but for now he liked the way this was going. This last few months had made him appreciate being able to do the mundane things with you, like waking up early in the morning only to stay in bed to be with each other, leaving notes on the door and bedside tables for the other, cooking food and enjoying the others cooking even when they weren’t there to eat with you. He realized how much you lightened up his life, because it was days like these where his heart felt the lightest and happiest, so he’d treasure them and the feelings they brought.

He knew that mornings like this were only in passing and that one day you’d look back at them and wonder how you did it. Because once these days go by and are lost to time, he’ll make sure there will be no need to treasure these rare moments - he’ll make them daily.

[365days365movies]

March 21, 2021: Orlando (1992)

Tilda Swinton...confuses me.

Like, in a good way. Because Tilda may be the most versatile actor working today. I mean, look at the goddamn filmography, and you’ll see what I’ve mean. I’ve seen Tilda Swinton in a lot, surprisingly, and I don’t think anything I’ve seen was bad. For example, I am an ARDENT defender in the portrayal of the Ancient One in the MCU.

I understand the controversy here, but I actually think this is excellent casting. Especially considering...being comic book-accurate would NOT have been a good idea with this role, if we’re trying to AVOID controversy. But Tilda Swinton FUCKING KILLED IT in this role, and I will always be happy for this choice.

Let’s see, there’s Jadis in the Narnia films, as shown at the top, there’s Snowpiercer, as Mason (an amazing character, and an acting job that Swinton disappears into), Moonrise Kingdom as Social Services, The Grand Budapest Hotel as Madame D., and Gabriel in Constantine. Which is a good segue to the next talking point...

Gabriel is pointedly androgynous, and honestly, Tilda Swinton kind of is as well. You may have noticed that I haven’t used any pronouns in referencing to Tilda Swinton, entirely out of respect. Gonna be a little hard to keep up with, so I’ll be using she/her from here on out, only because those are the pronouns that Swinton’s most recently promoted for herself. She’s also referred to herself as queer of some variety, as well as being famously gender non-conforming.

Which is fitting, given that a lot of that public image began with today’s movie, one of her first big roles. I’ll be revisiting Swinton in the independent movie scene in a couple of months, but this may be a good introduction. Instead of spoiling anything off the bat, I’m gonna jump right in. And so, I present: Orlando. SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap (1/2)

We begin with a young man named, well, Orlando (Tilda Swinton), a young man with a feminine appearance and a good upbringing. His name means power land and property, but all he really wants is company. He writes and rests by a tree in the day, but falls asleep by mistake. When he wakes up, he runs back to where he’s meant to be, with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth I (Quentin Crisp) playing in the background. And that’s a REAL song, by the way, actually sung in the 1600s for Elizabeth! Very neat.

A title screen flashes, reading “1600: Death”, and we see where Orlando is meant to be. He speaks poetry for the Queen and her court, but is interrupted by the aged queen, who asks whether or not his poem is appropriate for her presence, as the poem is about youth, and Queen Elizabeth is not that. Orlando’s father (John Bott), who is serving as host to Elizabeth, intervenes on his behalf. However, it doesn’t seem to matter to the Queen, as she invites Orlando back to England to serve as her “favourite”. He accepts, and soon lives alongside the Queen. She quickly promises Orlando much land and property, for him and his heirs, but on one condition: that he does not fade, wither, or grow old. 

The same wish cannot be applied to Elizabeth herself, nor to his father, as both grow old and die soon afterwards. Fast forward 10 years, and it’s a cold winter in England. Visiting Orlando’s vast estate is a woman from Russia, named Sasha (Charlotte Valandrey), and Orlando quickly falls for her. This is to the dismay of Euphrosne (Anna Healy), his fiancée? I’m not sure, to be honest, but they’re definitely involved, and she’s definitely upset.

However, this is also a scandal for everybody else as well, not just because Orlando’s already engaged, but also because Sasha is Russian, during a particularly poor economic period for the country. Euphrosne angrily throws his ring back at him, and Orlando speaks directly to the audience, telling us that a man must follow his heart. The two go to his private cottage, and they start to make out, when Orlando suddenly comes down with intense melancholy.

Because this is such great happiness that he feels, but this happiness too will one day end. Which is, like, the most emo-shit I’ve ever heard, but I’m kinda here for it. And yet, that happiness does indeed end, when Sasha is forced to return to Russia, despite Orlando’s pleading for her to stay. He asks her to meet him at London Bridge, so that they may elope together.

Later, Orlando happens upon a performance of Othello, noting to us that it’s a terrific play. This is as the death of Othello is being played out, so that’s probably foreshadowing, right? Anyway, Orlando leads two horses through the thick fog, waiting for Sasha to arrive and come away with him. But as a storm sets in, there is no sign of Sasha. And Orlando stands there in the rain. Said rain, though, soon becomes ice, underneath his feet, floating away down the river, along with his hopes of a happy future with Sasha. The treachery of women, according to Orlando.

Over the next week, Orlando languishes in his bed, asleep for the entire time. Increasingly more servants are brought up to try and rouse him, only for him to remain asleep, no matter what they do. But then, he wakes up, noting that he can only conjure three words to describe women, none of them worth explaining.

Forty years later, and the title screen cries “Poetry”! And Orlando looks exactly the same. Guess he really took that whole “don’t grow old” thing from Elizabeth to heart, huh? He speaks to a poet, Nick Greene (Heathcote Williams), and gushes about his poetry, which is a pursuit that he loves greatly. But Nick is...well, Nick is kind of a dick, to be honest. Orlando wants only to share his love and his poetry with him, but Nick’s only in it for the money. Not a true artist, and he mocks Orlando’s poetry, which he reads only after Orlando offers him money. And then, he writes a poem mocking Orlando further, which angers Orlando...but doesn’t stop the money flowing to Nick.

Orlando moves onto his next pursuit, in 1700, in the next section: Politics. Now over 100 years old, Orlando becomes an ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, and travels to Constantinople. There, he receives a somewhat rough and awkward greeting, which Orlando is not helping with. They share some Turkish coffee, Orlando has trouble drinking that Turkish coffee, they drink a LOT of Turkish coffee, and they toast to multiple things, including the “beauty of women, and the joys of love.” Orlando pauses at this, and reveals that he is still suffering quite a bit of heartbreak. His Turkish friend, the Khan (Lothaire Bluteau), bonds with him about this.

After 10 years, Orlando has fully retreated into life as a Turkish man. This is interrupted by a British emissary, sent to bring him news of a new appointment and power from the Queen. However, something goes wrong when the Khan arrives and takes Orlando hostage. The city is under attack, and the Khan asks Orlando if he will help against their enemies. Orlando agrees, and gives them arms, and heads to help himself at the walls. There, he witnesses a man dying, and it shakes him greatly. And just like before, he sleeps it off for seven days. And then...she wakes up.

YUP. WHAT.

Yeah, um, Orlando is now a woman. Like she says: “Same person, just a different sex.” Which is a very interesting premise, not gonna lie. Looks like Orlando now has to live life as a woman, which is going to be...difficult in 1700s Turkey. Or England. Or anywhere. Or any time.

Still, Orlando approaches this new life with aplomb, and without really any needed caution. Parading in some awesome dresses, she greets fellow nobility as the lady Orlando. However, the emissary from earlier, Archduke Harry (John Wood), begins to recognize her as similar to the lord Orlando.

In speaking with a group of poets, however, Orlando learns EXACTLY what men think of women in this society, and it’s not even a little bit good. She leaves, enraged and embarrassed. Harry also speaks with her, assuming that she was a woman all along. However, Orlando’s in EVEN MORE shit, as she’s quickly served with papers that are an attempt to take away all of her property and titles, because Lord Orlando is legally dead, and Lady Orlando is a woman, which one of them says is basically the same thing. FUCKIN’ YIKES, BRUV.

Ah, but Harry tries to help by proposing to her ON THE FUCKIN’ SPOT. He believed that Orlando was perfect as both genders, and is happy to do it. However, Orlando understandably refuses, and after Harry tells her that she will die as a spinster, alone and dispossessed, she runs into a nearby hedge maze. And while in the hedge maze, time passes, and her outfit changes to match the period accordingly.

Forward 140 years now! The year is 1850, and a new chapter begins: Sex.

And as she runs from the maze, she runs into who else...but Shelmerdine (Billy Zane), a man who...Shelmerdine? SHELMERDINE? What fuckin’ witch cursed his entirely family line to have THAT name? That’s the kind of family that was named AFTER a bridge, not the other way around! WHAT KINDA NAME IS FUCKIN’ SHELMERDINE?

Well, I’ve looked it up now, and it is apparently a real name. So, if any Shelmerdines are reading this...I mean, I’m sorry, but also, FUCKIN’ SHELMERDINE? OK, back to Shelmerdine. He’s twisted his ankle falling off his horse, and Orlando is now taking care of him. She reveals, in the process, that she’s about to lose everything. The reasons for that aren’t quite said, but Shelmerdine offers a place at his side, back to the great free land of America.

After having a conversation about the roles of men and women in the world (which is interesting given the context of the film in general), the two fulfill the chapter’s imperative. And we never see the act, but we do get some interesting angles and hand-holding. But the next morning, this post-coital reverie is interrupted by the lawyers from the Queen. The lawsuits have been settled, and Orlando has been legally declared a woman, meaning that unless she has a son, all of her possessions will be lost.

Shelmerdine (I swear, every time I say that name, a fairy gets chlamydia) leaves as well, with the southwest wind. As he heads back to America to fight for freedom, Orlando stands in the rain, facing an uncertain future, and broken fully by the politics of the time period.

And then...the sound of planes overhead. Looks like a new time period once again, heading into the periods of World Wars, and Orlando is now...heavily pregnant. OH. FUCK. Welcome to the next chapter: Birth.

We jump past the period of World War II, and to the 1990s! Orlando is presenting a book to a publisher, and he believes that the book will sell. With her young daughter in tow, she finally goes back to her old mansion, now finally able to go back after losing it 100 years prior. The narration from the beginning repeats, recontextualized for Orlando’s new life. She is over 400 years old, and finally, FINALLY...she is happy.

And that’s Orlando! I think I loved it. Real talk, this was a fascinating movie, and I’m into it. I’m very much into it. I’m sure there’s more to be gleaned from this film, but I’m glad I watched it regardless. More in the Review, though! See you there!